Review by: Meghan Watt

Majesty 2 may be a classic base-building RTS, but you can ditch the thought of endless power plants, Zerg rushes, walls made of guard towers and whatever outrageous money-eating strategies you used in the past. This fantastical venture aims for minimalism: a dozen heroes, a handful of buildings and that's it. With less of everything, there is no room for error. That means it is hard. Very, very hard. But if you like a challenge and ogres are your style, Majesty 2 is worth the pain.

It begins like the typical RTS. When the bad guy comes knocking, you start building: first the moneymaker, then the barracks, the guard towers, the blacksmith and so on. However, you can't just harvest some gold, cash in, muster the Rohirrim and storm the enemy's castle. Firstly, there is no Rohirrim. Instead, you have the usual hero lineup: ranger, mage, warrior, cleric and rogue (plus more classes and races later in the game). Only after building the appropriate guilds can you purchase their loyalty. Secondly, your newly hired heroes are all at Level 1. It takes a healthy dose of wolf brawls and undead duels before your recruits are ready for the big leagues. Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, your heroes may not want to storm the castle.

In Majesty 2, you don't really command. Instead, you set a task such as attacking a grizzly bear or exploring the lower-left corner of the map. Each class reacts to these tasks in different ways. For instance, the cleric might be the best against the undead, but she would rather stay back and defend. The elderly mage, on the other hand, loves a good fight but would prefer not to travel much. So when you politely request that someone go kill the oncoming army of skeletons, your heroes will decide whether that seems like something they'd want to do.

Mixing and matching the heroes' personalities and abilities lend plenty of variety when it comes to strategy, but winning the day doesn't boil down to simple preferences. Every task demands a reward. Sure, the ranger might enjoy wandering the wilderness, but he's only willing to do it if the price is right. Of course, if he refuses to bite, a lower level cleric might decide the cash is worth the trip.